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• Taxonomy
• Physical Description
• Distribution
• Similar Species
• Bibliography
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Taxonomy

Physical Description

Family Asclepiadaceae:

Herbs, shrubs, or rarely treelike, with milky or, less often, clear latex. Leaves simple, opposite or occasionally whorled, very rarely alternate, usually without obvious stipules, margin nearly always entire. Inflorescences terminal, axillary, or extra-axillary, cymose, often condensed and umbel-like, occasionally a racemelike bostrychium. Flowers bisexual, 5-merous, actinomorphic. Sepals joined at base only, often with 5 or more basal glands in the sinuses. Corolla sympetalous, reflexed to urceolate or salverform; lobes valvate or overlapping in bud to right or left. Corona usually present, inserted on corolla, stamens, or both. Stamens 5, usually inserted at base of corolla tube and adhering to stigma head to form gynostegium; filaments usually connate to form a tube enclosing ovaries; anthers 4-celled (Periplocoideae and Secamonoideae) or 2-celled (Asclepiadoideae), often with a membranous apical appendage; pollen tetrads contained loosely on a spatulate translator with a basal corpusculum (Periplocoideae), or pollen united into waxy pollinia, each attached through a caudicle (stalk) to the retinaculum (gland) between adjacent anthers to form a pollinarium, pollinia 2 (Asclepiadoideae) or 4 (Secamonoideae) per pollinarium. Ovaries 2, free, superior; ovules numerous. Styles connate; stigma head fleshy. Fruit of 1 or 2 follicles. Seeds numerous, strongly compressed, with a coma (a prominent basal tuft of silky hairs) . Chromosome number x = (8-) 11 (or 12) .

Some 250 genera and over 2000 species: widespread in tropical and subtropical regions, especially in Africa and southern South America, with a moderate representation in northern and southeastern Asia; 44 genera (four endemic) and 270 species (153 endemic) in China.

Some authorities include this family in the Apocynaceae. Genera 1-6 are sometimes placed in a separate family, the Periplocaceae, here regarded as a subfamily, Periplocoideae. Genera 7-10 belong to the Secamonoideae and the remaining genera to the Asclepiadoideae. Many Chinese taxa are known only from dried material, sometimes not well preserved, and it is likely that the study of living or spirit-preserved material could lead to a reassessment of the taxonomy of some of these endemic taxa.

All plant parts, especially the seeds and latex, are often poisonous. They contain various alkaloids and glycosides, many of which are used in medicine and as insecticides. A few succulent species (e.g., Stapelia gigantia N. E. Brown, Orbea pulchella (Masson) L. C. Leach, and O. variegata (Linnaeus) Haworth are grown by specialist collectors in China.^[1]

Distribution

Similar Species

Members of the genus Pachycarpus:

There are approximately 64 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus: P. albens · P. appendiculatus · P. asperifolius · P. bisacculatus · P. bullockii · P. campanulatus · P. chirindensis · P. concolor · P. concolor arenicola · P. concolor rhinophyllus · P. concolor transvaalensis · P. corniculatus · P. coronarius · P. crispus · P. dealbatus · P. decorus · P. distinctus · P. eximius · P. firmus · P. fulvus · P. galpinii · P. gerrardii · P. goetzei · P. gomphocarpoides · P. graminifolius · P. grandiflorus (Pachycarpus) · P. grantii · P. humilis · P. inconstans · P. insignis · P. lebomboensis · P. ligulatus · P. linearis · P. lineolatus · P. mackenii · P. macrochilus · P. marginatus · P. medusonema · P. mildbraedii · P. natalensis · P. orbicularis · P. pachyglossus · P. petherickianus · P. plicatus · P. reflectens · P. rhinophyllus · P. richardsiae · P. rigidus · P. robustus · P. rostratus · P. scaber · P. schinzianus · P. schumannii · P. schweinfurthii · P. spurius · P. stelliceps · P. stenoglossus · P. suaveolens · P. terminans · P. transvaalensis · P. validus · P. vexillaris · P. vexillatus · P. viridiflorus

Members of the genus Ficus:

There are approximately 3,284 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus. Here are just 100 of them: F. antandronarum bernardii · F. ardisioides camptoneura · F. botryocarpa hirtella · F. botryocarpa subalbidoramea · F. carica rupestris · F. chlamydocarpa fernandesiana · F. chlamydocarpa latifolia · F. chrysolepis novoguineensis · F. citrifolia brevifolia · F. cordata lecardii · F. cotinifolia myxaefolia · F. cotinifolia myxifolia · F. crassiramea stupenda · F. cyathistipula pringsheimiana · F. deltoidea motleyana · F. disticha calodictya · F. hirta dumosa · F. hirta ochracea · F. hirta roxburghii · F. insipida radulina · F. insipida scabra · F. insipida segoviae · F. johannis afghanistanica · F. lingua depauperata · F. magwana maragona · F. natalensis graniticola · F. nervosa minor · F. nervosa pubinervis · F. oleifolia intermedia · F. oleifolia monantha · F. ottoniifolia lucanda · F. ottoniifolia macrosyce · F. ottoniifolia multinervia · F. ottoniifolia ulugurensis · F. pachyclada arborea · F. palmata virgata · F. petiolaris brandegeei · F. petiolaris jaliscana · F. polita brevipedunculata · F. reflexa aldabrensis · F. reflexa sechellensis · F. sansibarica macrosperma · F. sarmentosa pubigera · F. scassellatii thikaensis · F. stellaris pallida · F. tinctoria tinctoria · F. tremula acuta · F. tremula kimuenzensis · F. trichocerasa pleioclada · F. 'Kelly' · F. 'Merlin' · F. 'Rasjida' · F. 'Stricta' · F. 'Triangel' · F. 'Velvet' · F. abbreviata · F. abelii · F. abscondita · F. abutifolia · F. abutilifolia · F. acamptophylla · F. acanthocarpa · F. acanthophylla · F. acarouaniensis · F. acidula · F. acreana · F. acrocarpa · F. acrorrhyncha · F. aculeata · F. aculeata var. aculeata · F. aculeata var. micracantha · F. acuminata · F. acuminatissima · F. acuta · F. acutifolia · F. acutiloba · F. adamsii · F. adelfeldtii · F. adelpha · F. adenosperma · F. adenosperma var. chaetophora · F. adenosperma var. glabra · F. adhaerens · F. adhatodaefolia · F. adhatodifolia · F. adnascens · F. adolfi-friderici · F. adolphi-friderici · F. adolphi-fridericii · F. aechmophylla · F. aegrophylla · F. aequatorialis · F. aequitorialis · F. affinior · F. affinis · F. afganica · F. afganistanica · F. afghanica · F. afghanistanica (Fig Tree) · F. africana

Bibliography

• Tsiang Ying & Li Ping-tao. 1977. Asclepiadaceae. Fl. Reipubl. Popularis Sin. 63: 249-575.

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Notes

Identifiers:

• Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 2396513
• Globally Unique Identifier: urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:100234-1
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 982137

Footnotes:

1. Bingtao Li, Michael G. Gilbert & W. Douglas Stevens "Asclepiadaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 16 Page 189. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org.